Organizations Making a Difference

We envision a world in which all people can access and enjoy food that is good for them, good for those who grow it and good for the planet.

“Collaboration Makes Us Stronger”

Slow Food Philadelphia is assisting other organizations in our region to collaborate with one another for services that might help us all move forward. These organizations help support good, clean, sustainable agriculture, hunger and proper nutrition in our region, and nutritional education. The Slow Food Movement in playing a support role has provided their contact information on our site to promote collaboration and to hopefully encourage other groups to join in.

We recently completed our second luncheon held on Friday, April 15th, at the Inn at Penn’s, Penne Restaurant. We hope to continue this forum several times a year. Below are the groups that are currently participating and the individuals who represent them.

Local and Sustainable Food Organizations

Fair Food has been uniting local farmers with businesses and consumers for over a decade. They promote the importance of family farms and create a year-round marketplace for fresh, local and humane food products in the Greater Philadelphia region. They provide an assortment of programs and services that contribute to a strong and sustainable local food system by working with different types of consumers. The Fair Food Farmstand, annual Local Food Guide and “Double Dollars” program provides an outlet for local food directly to consumers of all income levels, while the Farm to Institution program helps facilitates hospitals and schools achieve their local food procurement goals. Fair Food is supporting farmers, connecting consumers, educating the public and celebrating the joys of local food. www.fairfoodphilly.org

Farm to City is a Philadelphia based business that unites communities, families, and farmers year-round through good locally grown food; its slogan – Real Farmers, Real Food. Farm to City envisions a city connected to its region through its farmers and their crops, a city rich with healthful and flavorful food choices. Farm to City operates farmers’ markets in Philadelphia and nearby towns and provides recruitment and bookkeeping services to CSA farms. Its Winter Harvest Buying Club offers over 500 local foods produced by 40 farms and small food businesses with deliveries to 23 locations the Philadelphia area. Farm to City offers the use of its CSA and buying club web platform to other sustainable farming efforts. Its programs are described on its website: www.farmtocity.org

PASA / Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture’s consistent and driving vision has been to transform agriculture and food systems in Pennsylvania and beyond in a way that makes our farmers more viable, improves the land and restores the health and well-being of all our citizens. They are nonprofit in structure, but entrepreneurial in spirit, as they use their resources carefully to work collaboratively with others in achieving measurable results where they can, without compromising our values. www.pasafarming.org

The Common Market is a values-driven wholesale consolidator and distributor of local food. We create the link between local farmers and the urban marketplace. Our goal is both to support local agriculture and to make local food affordable and accessible on the wholesale level. www.commonmarketphila.org

The Reading Terminal Philadelphia’s historic farmers market, has an exhilarating selection of baked goods, meats, poultry, seafood, produce, flowers, ethnic foods, cookware and eclectic restaurants are peppered throughout the Market. The Market Corporation is a 501C3 not-for-profit organization created by the Pennsylvania Convention Center in 1994 for the sole purpose of managing the Reading Terminal Market. www.readingterminalmarket.org

The Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger takes a comprehensive, multipronged approach to fighting hunger that includes education, outreach and advocacy. They build the capacity of food pantries and soup kitchens, so these vital programs can feed more people who urgently need food. They help eligible Philadelphia residents obtain food stamps (SNAP), so they can buy groceries in a dignified manner and work toward self-sufficiency. They also advocate for responsible policies on the local, state and federal levels to reduce hunger in our communities and prevent children, seniors and families from having to worry about where the next meal will come from. www.hungercoalition.org

St. Christopher’s Foundation for Children supports the health and well-being of children in the community served by St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children through programs in the areas of care, outreach, research and education. They create and manage programs, including the Community Oral Health Initiatives and Farm to Families. They invest in many of the best organizations providing innovative, successful children’s health interventions. http://scfchildren.org

Sunday Suppers is a partnership with West Kensington Ministry that provides healthy shared dinners, increased access to fresh local food, and other food related support to families in need in the Norris Square area of Philadelphia. This collaboration insures that the program is created with input from the community and that it is tailored to their specific needs. http://sundaysuppersphilly.org

The SHARE Food Program is a nonprofit organization serving a regional network of community organizations engaged in food distribution, education, and advocacy.
SHARE promotes healthy living by providing affordable wholesome food to those willing to contribute through volunteerism.
Everyone is eligible to participate is the SHARE Food Program: “If you eat, you qualify.” www.sharefoodprogram.org

Les Dames d’Escoffier is an international philanthropic society of professional women in the fields of food, sustainable farming, fine beverage, and hospitality. The Green Tables Initiative is an international program that promotes sustainable, local farm practices, and contributes to the development of availability of fresh produce to areas that historically have had no access to healthful foods. Members volunteer in many ways to promote these interests, and they raise funds for use in educating the public about the importance of supporting local farming. www.lesdamesphiladelphia.com/green_tables_initiative/

Marathon Grill Farm Project is an urban farm in the Brewerytown neighborhood of North Philadelphia. They are reclaiming 15,000 square feet of vacant land on the corner of 27th and Master Streets. On it they will grow organic produce which will be sold at an affordable farm stand on site and a portion will be bought by Marathon Restaurants in Center City Philadelphia. Thay will hold educational programming for youth and adults every week, focusing on nutrition, the environment and sustainability. Programming will include: cooking demos, nutrition lectures, composting workshops, a gardening series and food preservation workshops. In addition to the farm, they will have a 20 plot community garden for neighbors, a community gathering space for workshops, neighborhood composting and a rainwater catchment system. http://marathonfarm.com

Penn State Extension offers practical how-to education and problem-solving assistance based on university research. They strive to help people make informed decisions to better their lives, businesses, and communities. It is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and state and county governments. Through this county-based partnership, Penn State extension agents, faculty, and local volunteers work together to share unbiased, research-based information with local residents. http://extension.psu.edu

Preston’s Paradise is an all-volunteer neighborhood organization that uses strengths-based partnerships to support community food security and resilience. We engage residents in growing, cooking, sharing, and learning about food and food justice. Preston’s Paradise also operates the West Philadelphia Fresh Food Hub, a mobile grocery store that delivers high quality affordable healthy food items to underserved neighborhoods. http://www.prestonsparadise.org/

Grid Magazine is our regional publication that publishes monthly articles on local sustainable issues here in Philadelphia. This tremendous resource covers topics including Green Living, Green Building, Food, Energy, Education, Gardening, and promotes events and is available both in hard copy and online. They also publish a Local Food Guide with Fair Food and Farmbook with PASA. www.gridphilly.com

Philly Homegrown is an initiative of the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC). The goals of the project are: to inspire consumers to shop from within the 100-mile foodshed, to broaden the market for local food, and to amplify the work of the local food movement of Greater Philadelphia. http://visitphilly.com